"As climate change drives more wildfires and makes the job more dangerous than ever, U.S. firefighters may finally receive long fought for medical benefits to deal with cancers and other work-related diseases".
"WASHINGTON - As drought-fueled wildfires surge, U.S. firefighters risking their lives on the frontline hope that a bill passed in Congress on Wednesday will help break decades of logjam over access to health care.
The bill, which the House of Representatives passed by 288 votes to 131, would create a presumption that certain illnesses are caused by firefighters' jobs, making it easier for them to get medical treatment and compensation, which many say can take years to receive - and often comes too late.
"The stars are aligned," U.S. Rep. Salud Carbajal, a Democrat from California and the bill's chief sponsor, told the Thomson Reuters Foundation ahead of the vote.
"I'm cautiously optimistic that we're going to get this over the finish line and signed by the president," he said, adding that the Senate is planning to take up a version of the bill in committee within the next few weeks."
David Sherfinski reports for Thomson Reuters Foundation May 11, 2022.
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